Boston Red Sox (40-27) @ Tampa Bay Rays (36-32)
Clay Buchholz (5-3, 3.59) @ David Price (7-5, 3.51)
7:10 PM EDT | Tropicana Field (St. Petersburg, FL)
TV: NESN, MLB Network RADIO: WEEI 850, WWZN 1510
INJURY REPORT
Boston: Bobby Jenks, left back tightness (Placed on the 15-day on DL June 8); Rich Hill, left elbow sprain (Placed on the 15-day DL on June 3, retroactive to June 2) Franklin Morales, left forearm strain (Placed on the 15-day DL on May 29, retroactive to May 26); Daisuke Matsuzaka, sprained elbow (Placed on the 15-day DL on May 17, transferred to the 60-day DL on June 3); Junichi Tazawa, right elbow surgery (placed on the 60-day DL on March 26)
Tampa Bay: Jeff Niemann, lower back strain (Placed on the 15-day DL on May 6, retroactive to May 5)
GAME NOTES
In a game that probably few people saw, Josh Beckett perhaps gave the best performance of his career last night, pitching a one-hit, no-walk, complete game shutout of the Rays. In the final game of the nine-game road trip, Clay Buchholz hopes to repeat Beckett’s gem. In seven starts against the Rays, Buchholz is 3-2 with a sterling 1.81 ERA. In his last start against the Yankees, Clay got the win, pitching seven innings and giving up just one run on three hits and two walks, while garnering six strikeouts. Clay needs to be careful when Casey is at the bat: Kotchman is 6 for 9 against Buchholz.
The Rays’ nasty lefty David Price takes the mound tonight. Price was hittable in his last start against the Orioles. He gave up four earned runs on eight hits (two home runs) and one walk, while striking out six. Price is 4-2, 3.18 against Boston in his career. Darnell McDonald has had some success against Price, going 4-12 with a homer against the southpaw.
Lineups
Red Sox
- Darnell McDonald, CF
- Dustin Pedroia, 2B
- Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
- Kevin Youkilis, 3B
- David Ortiz, DH
- Jed Lowrie, SS
- Carl Crawford, LF
- Mike Cameron, RF
- Jarrod Saltalamacchia, C
Tampa Bay
- Johnny Damon, DH
- Ben Zobrist, 2B
- Matt Joyce, RF
- Evan Longoria, 3B
- Casey Kotchman, 1B
- B.J. Upton, CF
- John Jaso, C
- Sam Fuld, LF
- Reid Brignac, SS
Fun Facts
– The Red Sox pitching staff lead the American League with 250 strikeouts and a K/9 of 7.43 on the road .
– The Sox love southpaws: they’ve won their last 10 games in which the opposing starting pitcher was a lefty.
– On June 16, 1938, Jimmie Foxx walked an AL record six times (in nine innings) in a 12-8 Red Sox Victory against the St. Louis Browns.
– And for today’s Totally Untrue Fun Fact: Roberto Luongo requested political asylum in North Korea today. Congratulations, Bruins!